Afghan Policewoman Kills American Adviser in Kabul

Afghan and NATO officials say a female Afghan police officer has killed an American adviser in the Afghan capital, in the first known “insider” attack by a woman.

The coalition says a woman wearing a police uniform shot and killed a contracted civilian employee of NATO on Monday inside Kabul's heavily guarded police headquarters. Afghan officials say the policewoman drew a pistol and shot the American once at close range.

The woman was arrested after the incident and was being interrogated by police.

Media reports say the suspect is a police officer named Nargis who works in the Legal and Gender Equality Department at the Interior Ministry.

NATO spokesman (Canadian) Brigadier General John Madower said a joint Afghan-NATO investigation was taking place and that this was a “very sad occasion.”

The shooting is the latest in which Afghan forces turn their weapons on a member of the Western coalition working with Afghan forces. At least 60 coalition members have been killed this year. NATO has attributed the majority of insider attacks to personal disputes. NATO has said Taliban infiltrators were responsible for about 25 percent of the attacks.

Coalition spokesman Madower told reporters in Kabul on Monday that “these are events that we are familiar with, we work very, very closely with our Afghan partners, there are events that affect both ISAF and our Afghan national security force brothers and we continue to work to mitigate them as much as possible.”

The attack took place just hours after a local Afghan police commander shot five of his colleagues at a checkpoint in the northern province of Jawzjan. Afghan officials said the police office ran away to join the Taliban.

Also Monday, NATO said a coalition service member was killed in an insurgent attack in eastern Afghanistan. No other details were given.